KUALA LUMPUR, May 2 (Xinhua) -- Malaysia's manufacturing sector outlook improves in April with a return to growth for export orders, a survey showed Thursday.
IHS Markit, a London-based global information provider that compiles the survey, said in a statement that the Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI) rose in April to its highest since September 2018, recording 49.4 compared to 47.2 in March.
Key to the upturn in the PMI was a renewed improvement in foreign demand in April, which had weakened business trends in prior months. New export orders also rose for the first time in five months.
IHS Markit chief business economist Chris Williamson said the headline PMI suggested manufacturing should help drive faster economic growth to just over 5 percent at the start of the second quarter.
"It also brought signs that firms have an improved appetite to expand capacity, taking on staff in greater numbers as business confidence in the outlook jumped to its highest for over five years, adding to hopes that the slowdown has bottomed out," he added.
